Norway will open negotiations with France to join the French nuclear umbrella, in a sign of the growing interest of several European countries to strengthen their security amid doubts about the future commitment of the United States to the defense of the continent.
The announcement was made this Wednesday in Paris by French President Emmanuel Macron and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere during a bilateral meeting in which both governments also signed a broader military cooperation agreement.
The decision marks a significant change in Norwegian defense policy. Although Oslo still considers NATO and the U.S. nuclear umbrella as the main basis of its deterrence strategy, the Norwegian government has decided to move towards closer cooperation with France on strategic security matters. Stoere stated that French nuclear capabilities represent ''an important contribution'' to NATO's defensive posture and to European security in general.
The agreement will allow Norway to participate in the French initiative known as ''advanced nuclear deterrence,'' through which some allied European countries become more closely integrated into strategic discussions and planning related to the French nuclear arsenal. Macron explained that the pact establishes a principle of mutual assistance between the two countries and defended the need to strengthen European strategic autonomy in light of the deteriorating international landscape.
''France's capabilities are an important contribution to NATO's deterrence posture, and that is important for us,'' Stoere declared in Paris. The Norwegian leader emphasized, however, that cooperation with France will not replace the central role of the Atlantic alliance or the military link with the United States, but rather will serve to strengthen European defensive capacity within the Western structure.
